The lone Eugene City Council race to require a November run-off features a councilor who is often the voice of dissent going against a political newcomer.
Ward 5 incumbent Mike Clark has long portrayed himself as an opposition voice on a council that he said most in his area do not approve of.
“I have long prided myself on being a fiercely independent voice for north Eugene, and have, for a long time, been the outsider and have stood against what I thought were bad decisions at council, and have done so sometimes even when I've had to stand alone,” he said at a September forum held by the City Club of Eugene.
His challenger, Athena Aguiar, said the council would likely be held in higher regard by the people it represents if councilors made more of an effort to engage constituents on issues and vote in a way that is responsive to voter opinions.
“If people feel they have control over the council a little bit more, or their own representative, I think people will feel, hopefully, like they have control over their own community, their own city, and their own lives,” she said at the forum.
The city’s budget shortfall was a topic of discussion during the forum, though the candidate’s ideas on how to handle the issue differed.
Clark said his top concern while balancing the budget is to protect what he called “core services.”
“Fire, police. Safety for the people of Eugene is fundamental, and other things that are nice to have may need to be trimmed if we don't have the money,” he said.
Aguiar said the long-term answer is shifting services to lower-cost options. She mentioned how CAHOOTS used to respond to some emergency calls rather than police officers.
“Obviously that's going to take many years, and the cuts will probably need to be made next year,” she said. “So in that case, I would say that I would love to ask the public what they think should be cut.”
Both also mentioned the need to expand the city’s economy and add jobs.
Clark said that the city needs to lean into its strengths to further grow its economy.
“Eugene is a beautiful community filled with brilliant people,” he said. “The University of Oregon is a great benefit to the city of Eugene, and it's my opinion that we've never leveraged that to the extent that we should.”
Clark mentioned the Southern Willamette Valley Innovation Corridor Initiative, a regional economic development effort that was founded to help turn research breakthroughs at the University of Oregon and Oregon State University into economic development.
Aguiar agreed that the SWVICI is a good way to help create high-quality jobs in the region. But she also noted the effect that Ballot Measure 20-388, also known as the Eugene Clean Energy Fund, could have on job creation.
“A portion of the fund, if it passes, will be going toward clean energy jobs, which is a new sector,” she said. “And I think it’s important that we lean into new and growing sectors because with the climate, part of why we’re having all of these fires and need to make sure we have a good fire department is because there’s been climate change.”
Clark opposes the measure, saying the city’s best path toward economic growth is to limit taxes and fees as much as possible.
Both spoke about housing, and largely agreed that the best option is to encourage building in the area.
Aguiar, who recently told Lookout Eugene-Springfield that she is struggling to find a home in Ward 5, said one key is to allow more multi-family home construction.
“That means making sure we have a multi-unit zoning where appropriate, making sure we introduce multi-use zoning where we have the businesses and the commercial on the bottom of those apartment buildings,” she said.
Clark said the council has another tool as well.
“The city council can keep a lid on how much it costs all of you, and the way it does that is the property taxes that we charge you that end up in your rent payment and your mortgage payment,” he said.
They agreed on some topics during the forum, such as ensuring that Eugene Police do not aid federal immigration crackdowns.
